GUWAHATI: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said two persons, including a retired Army jawan currently re-employed on a contractual basis, were arrested for allegedly passing security-related information to Pakistan.Addressing a press conference, Sarma said the arrests were made based on inputs provided by central agencies.“Today, as per input of central agencies, the Assam Police arrested two persons. One is a retired army jawan but currently working on a contractual basis with the army,” he said at a press conference, when asked about an espionage-related arrest which was shared with the media through a police statement.“It has been alleged that they were in touch with Pakistan and were giving information about army movement. We will hand them over to the central agencies,” Sarma added.The chief minister said initial reports suggest the two accused were allegedly honey-trapped by those extracting the information.Earlier in the day, Assam Police said its Special Task Force (STF) had arrested a Bihar resident staying in a rented accommodation in Guwahati for alleged espionage-related activities.In a statement, police said preliminary investigation indicated his alleged involvement in passing secret information related to security forces to a Pakistani intelligence operative (PIO).The accused, identified as Abhishek Kumar Singh, is a resident of Purba Champaran district in Bihar.According to police, an initial input about the suspect was shared by the Military Intelligence unit of the Tezpur-based Gajraj Corps.The STF, in coordination with Sonitpur Police, gathered further information on Singh, who was suspected of being involved in anti-national activities under the instructions of a PIO.“Based on the information, during the intervening night of October 3 and 4, the Assam STF conducted an operation and apprehended the 31-year-old man from a rented house in Guwahati,” the police said.During the operation, police recovered a mobile phone, SIM cards and documents from his possession.“Further investigation is underway,” the statement added.(With Agency Inputs)
